Introduction to Judaism 3600-7-HE1-WJ2

Basic subjects to be covered:
1) The Jews (Who are the Jews? Facts and figures, Natives or immigrants?)
2) The Jews throughout the world (North America, Israel, Former Soviet Bloc countries, The European Union, Latin America)
3) The Jewish people and its past (The Jewish nation, Universalism, Assimilation, Dispersion, Genocide)
4) Jewish books (The Bible, The prayer book, The Talmud, The Shulkhan Arukh, The Zohar, The Guide of the Perplexed,)
5) The Jewish religion (Traditional Judaism , The modernist reform, Radical alternatives)
6) The family (The family as a unit, The Jewish home, Rites of passage)
7) The community (The Jewish community, The synagogue, The worship of the synagogue)
8) Religious services (The cycle of the year, Moments of life)
9) Other communal institutions
10) Sources of Jewish theology (The Bible, Midrash and Haggadah, the liturgy, Mystical approaches Jewish philosophers)
11) God in the twentieth century (Hermann Cohen and his legacy, American Jewish theology , God and the Shoah, New issues)
12) Theological developments (Holiness, Obedience, Righteousness, Faith, Fear and Love, Bringing the Messiah, Repairing the world, Making peace, After life)
13) Judaism and its future (Demographic trends, Political and social aspects , Religious pluralism)

Prerequisites (description)

Withing the scope of the course the overview of basic ideas and concepts of Judaism is covered, along with an introduction to broadly conceived legacy of Jewish thought and its most salient representatives. In addition, an overview of Jewish liturgical year with all its holidays is presented, concluded with introducing the most important Jewish religious movements and sects.

Course coordinators

Marek Baraniak

Type of course

General:

elective courses
supplementary
general courses
obligatory courses
optional courses
elective monographs

Term 2024L:

general courses
supplementary
elective monographs
obligatory courses
optional courses

Mode

Classroom

Learning outcomes

Knowledge:
- knows and understands basic philosophical trends and terms as well as the role of philosophical reflection in culture shaping processes [K_W03]
-has detailed and organized knowledge of Jewish philosophy and religion [K_W07]
- basic cultural phenomena of Judaism and Israel[K_W10]
-demonstrates basic grasp of contemporary cultural life in Israel and of the Jews [K_W16]
- knows and understands basic analysis and interpretation methods of various products of culture characteristic of chosen theories and schools of research within the scope of cultural and literary studies, linguistics, philosophy and religion studies and history [K_W18]
- knows and understands basic analysis and interpretation methods of various products of culture characteristic of local traditions in Judaism and Israel [K_W19]

Skills:
-can indicate sources of cultural differences in Israel and the Jews in the diaspora [K_U02]
-can use the basic terminology from the domain of Jewish philosophy and religion [K_U03]
-can indicate most important intellectual problems, dilemmas, aesthetic preferences taking shape inside the culture of Judaism and Israel [K_U10]

Social competences:
-make others aware of the cultural distinctness and its religious, philosophical, traditional and historical roots and its significance for understanding modern world [K_K05]
-sees the need of dialogue between cultures [K_K06]
-is aware of significance the culture of Judaism and Israel have for the culture of the world[K_K07]
-perceives the positive socio-cultural values of Judaism and Israel and possibility to use them in own personal development and effective intercultural communication [K_K09]

Assessment criteria

The final grade for the year consists of attendance, which is required to obtain a pass, and grades for the presentation/essay and the final test.

Practical placement

Does not apply

Bibliography

Nicholas de Lange, An Introduction to Judaism, Cambridge 2000.
Judaizm, praca zbiorowa, Biblioteka Pisma Literacko-Artystycznego, Kraków 1989.
Ninel Kameraz-Kos, Święta i obyczaje żydowskie, Cyklady, Żydwoski Instytut Historyczny, Warszawa 1997.
Alan Unterman, Żydzi Wiara i życie, Wydawnictwo Łódzkie, Łódź 1989.
Rabin Simon Philip de Vries Mzn., Obrzędy i symbole Żydów, Wydawnictwo WAM, Kraków 2000.
Słowniki i encyklopedie:
Encyklopedia Judaica (26 tomów), Keter, Jerusalem 1972.
Polski słownik Judaistyczny: dzieje, kultura, religia, ludzie (2 tomy), Prószyński I S-ka, Warszawa 2003.
Nowy leksykon judaistyczny, Cyklady, Warszawa 2007.

Term 2024L:

Notes

Term 2024L:

The final grade for the year consists of attendance, which is required to obtain a pass, and grades for the presentation/essay and the final test.

Additional information

Additional information (registration calendar, class conductors, localization and schedules of classes), might be available in the USOSweb system:

Description of 3600-7-HE1-WJ2 in USOSweb